Parametric tool wear estimation solution of HSC appropriate machining

New strategies are used in manufacturing enterprises due to global competition. High-speed cutting offers a very appropriate opportunity to reduce run times since the high cutting speeds and feed rates involved permit the reduction of production times and minimise rework. There are, however, difficulties in judging tool wear [1]. This paper analyses the formation mechanism of tool wear and presents a complete solution to calculate wear using a ball end cutter for high-speed cutting. Chip geometry generated to calculate tool wear is affected by machining conditions such as turning speed, cutting depth and geometries of tool and work piece which in turn determine the key parameters of chip sections such as length of cut and mean chip thickness. An improved algorithm and a knowledge-based decision model developed to calculate effective tool contact are also discussed to help reduce calculation time and improve calculation efficiency. The calculation results include output form and a 3D wear model showing wear data distributed on the tool contour.     

Tool wear analysis and improvement of cutting conditions using the high-pressure water-jet assistance when machining the Ti17 titanium alloy

This paper presents experimental results concerning the machinability of the titanium alloy Ti17 with and without high-pressure water jet assistance (HPWJA) using uncoated WC/Co tools. For this purpose, the influence of the cutting speed and the water jet pressure on the evolution of tool wear and cutting forces have been investigated. The cutting speed has been varied between 50 m/min and 100 m/min and the water jet pressure has been varied from 50 bar to 250 bar. The optimum water jet pressure has been determined, leading to an increase in tool life of approximately 9 times. Compared to conventional lubrication, an increase of about 30% in productivity can be obtained.     

Novel tool wear monitoring method in ultra-precision raster milling using cutting chips

Tool wear monitoring is a popular research topic in the field of ultra-precision machining. However, there appears to have been no research on the monitoring of tool wear in ultra-precision raster milling (UPRM) by using cutting chips. In the present research, monitoring tool wear was firstly conducted in UPRM by using cutting chips. During the cutting process, the fracture wear of the diamond tool is directly imprinted on the cutting chip surface as a group of ‘ridges’. Through inspection of the locations, cross-sectional shape of these ridges by a 3D scanning electron microscope, the virtual cutting edge of the diamond tool under fracture wear is built up. A mathematical model was established to predict the virtual cutting edge with two geometric elements: semi-circle and isosceles triangle used to approximate the cross-sectional shape of ridges. Since the theoretical prediction of cutting edge profile concurs with the inspected one, the proposed tool wear monitoring method is found to be effective.     

Enhancing the machining performance by cutting tool surface modifications: a focused review

In machining, cutting tools suffer from severe surface wear, especially in the cutting of difficult-to-cut materials. A major cause of tool wear is the friction generated at the tool-work and tool-chip interfaces, which produces a great deal of frictional heat and abrasion. In order to extend tool life and improve the quality of machined components, a host of techniques have been applied to modify the rake and flank faces of cutting tools. These techniques aim at providing cutting tools with improved resistance to external loading, better tribological performance and/or better chemical stability. This article presents a review of the fundamentals behind which the friction and wear in machining are reduced by modifying the cutting tool surface with the commonly used techniques, such as surface coating, high energy beam treatment, and surface texturing. The effects of these surface modifications on improving the cutting performance are also analyzed. Future research directions are finally discussed.     

An experimental investigation of tool wear in electric discharge machining

In this study, the variations of geometrical tool wear characteristics – namely, edge and front wear – and machining performance outputs – namely, workpiece removal rate, tool wear rate, relative wear and workpiece surface roughness – were investigated with varying machining parameters. Experiments were conducted using steel workpieces and round copper tools with a kerosene dielectric under different dielectric flushing conditions (injection, suction and static), discharge currents and pulse durations. The experiments have shown that machining parameters and dielectric flushing conditions had a large effect on geometric tool wear characteristics and machining performance outputs. Additionally, published research on tool wear is presented in detail in this study.     

Influence of tool wear on surface roughness in hard turning using differently shaped ceramic tools

Hard turning has been applied in many cases in producing bearings, gears, cams, shafts, axels, and other mechanical components since the early 1980s. Mixed ceramics (aluminum oxide plus TiC or TiCN) is one of the two cutting tool materials (apart from PCBN) widely used for finish machining of hardened steel (HRC 50–65) parts, especially under dry machining conditions and moderate cutting speed ranging from 90 to 120 m/min. This paper reports an extensive characterization of the surface roughness generated during hard turning (HT) operations performed with conventional and wiper ceramic tools at variable feed rate and its changes originated from tool wear. Moreover, it compares some predominant tool wear patterns produced on the two types of ceramic inserts and their influence on the alteration of surface profiles. After the hard turning tests, the relevant changes of surface profiles and surface roughness parameters were successively registered and measured by a stylus profilometer. In this investigation, a set of 2D surface roughness parameters, as well as profile and surface characteristics, such as the amplitude distribution functions, bearing area curves and symmetrical curves of geometrical contact obtained for the machined surface, were determined and analyzed. A novel aspect of this research is that the notch wear progress at the secondary cutting (trailing) edges was found to produce the substantial modifications of the individual irregularities, and constitute the altered surface profiles. Moreover, this research contributes to practical aspects of HT technology due to exploring the relations between the tool state at different times within the tool life and the relevant surface roughness characterization.     

Effects of the cutting feed, depth of cut, and workpiece (bore) diameter on the tool wear rate

Most published studies on metal cutting regard the cutting speed as having the greatest influence on tool wear and, thus, tool life, while other parameters and characteristics of the cutting process have not attracted as much attention in this respect. This is because of the existence of a number of contradicting results on the influence of the cutting feed, depth of cut, and workpiece (bore) diameter. The present paper discusses the origin of the aforementioned contradicting results. It argues that, when the optimal cutting temperature is considered, the influence of the aforementioned parameters on tool wear becomes clear and straightforward. The obtained results reveal the true influence of the cutting feed, diameter of the workpiece, and diameter of the hole being bored on the tool wear rate. It was also found that the depth of cut does not have a significant influence on the tool wear rate. The obtained results provide methodological help in the experimental assessment and proper reporting of the tool wear rates studied under different cutting conditions.     

Detection process approach of tool wear in high speed milling

The cutting tool wear degrades the quality of the product in the manufacturing process, for this reason an on-line monitoring of the cutting tool wear level is very necessary to prevent any deterioration. Unfortunately there is no direct manner to measure the cutting tool wear on-line. Consequently we must adopt an indirect method where wear will be estimated from the measurement of one or more physical parameters appearing during the machining process such as the cutting force, the vibrations, or the acoustic emission, etc. The main objective of this work is to establish a relationship between the acquired signals variation and the tool wear in high speed milling process; so an experimental setup was carried out using a horizontal high speed milling machine. Thus, the cutting forces were measured by means of a dynamometer whereas; the tool wear was measured in an off-line manner using a binocular microscope. Furthermore, we analysed cutting force signatures during milling operation throughout the tool life. This analysis was based on both temporal and frequential signal processing techniques in order to extract the relevant indicators of cutting tool state. Our results have shown that the variation of the variance and the first harmonic amplitudes were linked to the flank wear evolution. These parameters show the best behavior of the tool wear state while providing relevant information of this later.     

Wear behavior of some cutting tool materials in hard turning of HSS

This study presents an assessment of the performance of four cutting tool in the machining of medium hardened HSS: polycrystalline c-BN (c-BN+TiN), TiN coated polycrystalline c-BN (c-BN+TiN), ceramic mixed alumina (Al₂O₃+TiC), and coated tungsten carbide (TiN coated over a multilayer coating (TiC/TiCN/Al₂O₃)). The Al₂O₃+TiC and the coated carbide tools can outperform both types of c-BN at high cutting speeds. Raman and SEM mapping revealed an alumina tribo-layer that protects the surface of the Al₂O₃+TiC cutting tool. The high chemical and thermal stability of Al₂O₃ tribo-films protects the tool substrate because it prevents the heat generated at the tool/chip interface from entering the tool core.     

An artificial-neural-networks-based in-process tool wear prediction system in milling operations

An artificial-neural-networks-based in-process tool wear prediction (ANN-ITWP) system has been proposed and evaluated in this study. A total of 100 experimental data have been received for training through a back-propagation ANN model. The input variables for the proposed ANN-ITWP system were feed rate, depth of cut from the cutting parameters, and the average peak force in the y-direction collected online using a dynamometer. After the proposed ANN-ITWP system had been established, nine experimental testing cuts were conducted to evaluate the performance of the system. From the test results, it was evident that the system could predict the tool wear online with an average error of ±0.037 mm. Experiments have shown that the ANN-ITWP system is able to detect tool wear in 3-insert milling operations online, approaching a real-time basis .     

2D FEM estimate of tool wear in turning operation

Finite element method (FEM) is a powerful tool to predict cutting process variables, which are difficult to obtain with experimental methods. In this paper, modelling techniques on continuous chip formation by using the commercial FEM code ABAQUS are discussed. A combination of three chip formation analysis steps including initial chip formation, chip growth and steady-state chip formation, is used to simulate the continuous chip formation process. Steady chip shape, cutting force, and heat flux at tool/chip and tool/work interface are obtained. Further, after introducing a heat transfer analysis, temperature distribution in the cutting insert at steady state is obtained. In this way, cutting process variables e.g. contact pressure (normal stress) at tool/chip and tool/work interface, relative sliding velocity and cutting temperature distribution at steady state are predicted. Many researches show that tool wear rate is dependent on these cutting process variables and their relationship is described by some wear rate models. Through implementing a Python-based tool wear estimate program, which launches chip formation analysis, reads predicted cutting process variables, calculates tool wear based on wear rate model and then updates tool geometry, tool wear progress in turning operation is estimated. In addition, the predicted crater wear and flank wear are verified with experimental results.     

Mirror surface machining of high-alloy steels by elliptical vibration cutting with single-crystalline diamond tools: Influence of alloy elements on diamond tool damage

Elliptical vibration cutting with single-crystalline diamond tools is applied to mirror surface machining of high-alloy steels such as cold work die steels and high-speed tool steels with a hardness of more than 60 HRC. Although practical mirror surface machining of hardened die steels such as Stavax (modified AISI 420) with a hardness of 53 HRC has been realized with the elliptical vibration cutting, lives of single-crystalline diamond tools are not sufficiently long in machining of some high-alloy steels, that may be caused by a large amount of alloy elements. In order to clarify the influence of the alloy elements on the diamond tool damage, the elliptical vibration cutting experiments are conducted on six kinds of high-alloy steels and four kinds of pure metals which are the same as the alloy elements. Mechanical properties of the alloy steels, i.e. difference in hardness between carbides and matrices, and the number of small carbides, are measured, and their influence on the micro-chippings are investigated. The chemical states of the alloy elements in high-alloy steels are analyzed using an X-ray diffraction (XRD) and an electron probe micro analyzer (EPMA), and their influence on the tool wear is discussed. Based on the investigation, a mirror surface machining of DC53, which has a high hardness of 62.2 HRC and the best machinability in the tested high-alloy steels, is demonstrated, and a mirror surface with a roughness of Rt 0.05 μm is obtained successfully.     

An automatic system based on vibratory analysis for cutting tool wear monitoring

The aim of this work is to develop a new, simple to use and reliable automatic method for detection and monitoring wear on the cutting tool. To achieve this purpose, the vibratory signatures produced during a turning process were measured by using a three-axis accelerometer. Then, the mean power analysis was proposed to extract an indicator parameter from the vibratory responses, to be able to describe the state of the cutting tool over its lifespan. Finally, an automatic detector was proposed to evaluate and monitor tool wear in real time. This detector is efficient, simple to operate in an industrial environment and does not require any protracted computing time.     

Investigation of tool wear suppression in ultraprecision diamond machining of die steel

Rapid tool wear in diamond machining of steel can cause catastrophic failures. Despite several approaches to reducing tool wear, diamond machining of steel for industrial applications remains limited. We investigated two solutions, namely plasma nitriding treatment for workpiece surface modification and elliptical vibration cutting for cutting process modification, to determine their effect on reducing tool wear in diamond machining of AISI 4140 die steel. Furthermore, a new approach by combining the two solutions was also explored. Experimental results showed that diamond tool wear could be reduced by several orders of magnitude and mirror-quality surface can be obtained by using either the plasma nitriding treatment or the elliptical vibration cutting. However, in contrast to our expectations, combining the two solutions did not yield further improvement of either the surface finish or the reduction of tool wear compared with that of elliptical vibration cutting alone due to microchipping. Care has been taken to investigate the mechanism responsible for microchipping, and it was found that microchipping is highly dependent on the crystal orientation of the diamond. A diamond tool with the (1 1 0) plane as the rake face and the (1 0 0) plane as the flank face was more resistant to damage, and the microchipping induced in the combined cutting process was almost completely suppressed.     

Investigation of tool wear in High Speed Machining by using a ballistic set-up

Investigation of tool wear in High Speed Machining (HSM) by using a ballistic set-up is proposed. An originality of this work consists in analyzing the previous models in sight of the real temperatures fields measured during the cutting process. Results show the high potentiality of the presented device associated with wear modeling. The chip formation and the temperature distribution are observed in real time under perfect orthogonal cutting conditions at very high cutting speeds with an intensified CCD camera. Observations highlight the importance of the evolution of the tool-chip contact during the crater wear process, especially when low feeds are selected. For low feeds, the crater profile seems control the rolling-up of the chip which also participates to accentuate the wear. Experimental results such as temperature distribution and contact length are input into diffusion wear models under different assumptions for predicting the evolution of crater profiles. Taking into account the mechanical action of the chip on the tool rake face, the prediction of tool wear is reached with a great accuracy.     

Cutting forces,tool wear and surface finish in high speed diamond machining

We have investigated the cutting forces, the tool wear and the surface finish obtained in high speed diamond turning and milling of OFHC copper, brass CuZn39Pb3, aluminum AlMg5, and electroless nickel. In face turning experiments with constant material removal rate the cutting forces were recorded as a function of cutting speed between v_c = 150 m/min and 4500 m/min revealing a transition to adiabatic shearing which is supported by FEM simulations of the cutting process. Fly-cutting experiments carried out at low (v_c = 380 m/min) and at high cutting speed (v_c = 3800 m/min) showed that the rate of abrasive wear of the cutting edge is significantly higher at ordinary cutting speed than at high cutting speed in contrast to the experience made in conventional machining. Furthermore, it was found that the rate of chemically induced tool wear in diamond milling of steel is decreasing with decreasing tool engagement time per revolution. High speed diamond machining may also yield an improved surface roughness which was confirmed by comparing the step heights at grain boundaries obtained in diamond milling of OFHC copper and brass CuZn39Pb3 at low (v_c = 100 m/min) and high cutting speed (v_c = 2000 m/min). Thus, high speed diamond machining offers several advantages, let alone a major reduction of machining time.     

Crater and flank wear resistance of cutting tools having micro textured surfaces

We have proposed cutting tools with various textured surfaces to increase cutting tool life. Our previous studies have developed cutting tools having periodical stripe-grooved surfaces on their rake face formed using femtosecond laser technology, which displayed high crater wear resistance in cutting of steel materials. In this study, the mechanism for suppressing the crater wear on the tool surface and the relationship between texture dimensions and wear resistance were investigated to provide a guideline for developing tools with textured surfaces. Furthermore, we newly introduced the textured surfaces into a flank face of cutting tools to improve flank wear resistance. Face milling experiments on steel materials exhibited that the newly developed tool having the textured flank face significantly reduced the flank wear. Moreover, the influences of texture dimensions and cutting conditions on the flank wear resistance were also discussed.     

纯钒车削刀具磨损表面形态及机理研究

对金刚石刀具、涂层刀具及硬质合金刀具车削纯钒时刀具磨损形态及其磨损机理进行观察和分析.结果表明,在所选取条件下,不同刀具材料对工件材料切削时表现出的刀具磨损形态主要为前刀面磨损、后刀面磨损、微崩刃、剥落和粘结等.刀具的前刀面主要是沿切屑流出方向的沟槽形月牙洼磨损,而后刀面以粘结磨损为主.CD10刀具和H10非涂层刀具具有较佳的切削性能,而H13A非涂层刀具和GC1025涂层刀具不适于纯钒车削.     

Effects of tool overhang on selection of machining parameters and surface finish during diamond turning

In precision machining leading to nano-metric surface finish, selection of the suitable machining parameters is a critical task. To ensure the desired surface quality, one needs to optimally select the machining parametric matrix. Towards this effort, this paper adds another critical parameter in terms of tool overhang. A well-defined set of machining exercises is carried out with different tool overhangs and machining parameters. In this investigation, an attempt has been made to locate the optimum range of tool overhang with minimum tool vibrations. The interaction between tool overhang with other parameters is also thoroughly investigated. Another important focus of this study is to find out the optimum machining parameters for the situations where it is not possible to select an optimum tool overhang. One such situation occurs when a steep concave parabolic surface needs to be fabricated. In this case a large tool overhang has to be selected. Power spectral density distribution analysis of surface roughness for different tool overhangs is performed to find out significant parameters and their degree of contribution to surface roughness. Analysis of variance is also applied to ascertain statistically significant factors contributing to surface roughness. To model the surface roughness, response surface methodology is being used. The model has been verified by conducting a series of experiments and a steep concave parabolic surface is developed by following the predictions of the developed model.     

Belt abrasion resistance and cutting tool studies on new ultra-hard boride materials

Composites of AlMgB₁₄ with 0, 30, and 70 wt% of TiB₂ were prepared by mechanical alloying and hot pressing. The composites’ belt abrasion resistance and cutting tool performance were measured by gravimetric analysis of material removal at varying loads and cutting speeds. AlMgB₁₄-70 wt% TiB₂ composites had high hardness and fracture toughness and the highest abrasive resistance of the three compositions. Cutting tool performance of AlMgB₁₄-70 wt% TiB₂ showed low wear due to chipping and little reaction with the Ti-6Al-4V work-piece. Subsurface damage and adhesion of the work-piece onto the tool material were gauged by SEM.